[The team attempt to escape from a nasty Goa'uld. No spoilers.]
Capricorn (December
22 - January 20)
Today you will watch something
like a hawk. Basically, you do that by having unblinking beady little eyes, and a brain the size of a peanut.
"Ah… crap." Jack swore as he was dumped unceremoniously onto the floor of the prison cell. He coughed, spitting blood in the general direction of his captors and then groaned as they returned it via the most expedient method… a boot to the ribs.
Behind the Jaffa, he saw Daniel and Carter on their backs in the cell opposite his. Teal'c got his own cell further down the row.
"This one is most dangerous. The others will not act without his command. Do not take your eyes from him." So saying, the Goa'uld… they hadn't even had a chance to learn her name yet, flounced away leaving SG1 in prison.
"Ow." Daniel rolled onto his side, coughing. He had been interrogated like the others. His hair was matted with blood, his glasses were gone and he wrapped his arms protectively around his stomach.
"Daniel? You with us?"
Daniel looked blearily in his direction. "Unfortunately, it seems so." He wheezed before rolling back the other way. "Sam?" He tried to wipe the blood off his hands before gently shaking her shoulder.
"Weaklings." The Jaffa snorted disdainfully as Sam groaned and sat upright, leaning on Daniel. Jack noticed that the Jaffa's eyes never left the Colonel.
"So…" Jack kept the Jaffa focussed on him as Carter and Daniel sorted themselves out. He saw Daniel look sideways, presumably checking on Teal'c. Daniel made a circle of his forefinger and thumb, indicating that all was well with their Jaffa.
"What's a nice Jaffa like you doing in a place like this?" Jack grinned as the Jaffa growled at him but made no other response. "Ooo-kay… how about this? Why did snake-face there tell you to keep your eyes on me? You do know that my team is sneaking up on you at this very moment, don't you?"
The Jaffa flinched, almost turning but catching himself at the last moment. "Silence!" He roared, striking at the bars of the cage with his staff weapon.
"Sweet. So, you're like those British soldiers? I can do anything and you have to keep watching me? Hey! Look, it's Sokar in a tutu!"
While Jack taunted the guard, Daniel checked over Sam, while she returned the favour, Once they were assured that the other would survive, they began working on a way out.
Sam scanned the door and bars of the prison, while Daniel squinted his way around the walls, feeling his way over the symbols on the golden surface.
"So what's with the forehead thing? Looks like 'ohms'. Lemme guess, you worship the great God Wattage." He tilted his head.
"This is not the Udjat." The Jaffa projected outrage. "It is Shen, the sign of my goddess Nekhbet, the Mother."
"I said 'wattage', not…" Jack trailed off and waved a hand dismissively. "Never mind. Better tell 'mom' her babies need a spanking." He drawled. Behind him, he could see Daniel processing the information. He could tell by that thoughtful look that Daniel now knew a lot more than he did about their captor.
Still, it didn't look like that knowledge was helping them much. Carter and Daniel were whispering away in their cell. Jack had let his side of an admittedly almost completely one-sided conversation lapse. The Jaffa started to turn, to investigate.
Moving far faster than he wanted to, Jack was on his feet, bringing the guard's attention right back at him. The Jaffa powered up his staff weapon, bringing it level with Jack's chest. Behind the Jaffa, Sam and Daniel froze in place.
"Fool!" The guard bellowed. You will cower in fear before my Goddess!"
"Uh, no. Considering that you're on the outside of the cage and I'm unarmed and you're still scared of me… nah." Jack made a dismissive gesture.
The Jaffa growled, but raised his staff weapon, unwilling to show fear.
"No, that's okay." Jack tried to sound soothing. "Hold on to it if you want. I know it makes you feel better while you're watching four unarmed captives locked in their cells. I can understand you needing the… security." He said the last with a mocking grin.
Snorting, the Jaffa hurled his weapon sideways, thumping his fists against his chest. "I need no weapon to defeat you, Tau'ri."
Seeing that he once again had the attention of both the guard and his friends, Jack made a fist and held it up. "Hoorah. I can feel the testosterone."
They had been a team for a long time, and with good reason. They worked well together. Carter and Daniel instantly recognised the military signal for 'down' and dropped to the ground. Carter's nod confirmed that Teal'c had done the same.
Jack took his cue. "Pay no attention to the noises behind you." His team picked up on his signals like he knew they would. Lacking anything to make a noise with, Daniel slammed his booted foot against the stone floor, creating a muffled thump.
The guard broke and whirled around, spotting only the other three on the ground, smiling blandly back up at them. Jack used the distraction to creep forward so that he was only inches away from the bars when the guard turned back.
"Boo." He said softly.
The Jaffa reacted before he could stop himself, leaping backward and crashing into Carter and Daniel's cell. Carter was on her knees in a flash, pulling the Jaffa's knife from its sheath and then sitting back down before he could feel that it was gone.
Roaring, the guard turned and slammed his fist against the door of Carter and Daniel's cell. The archaeologist gave a theatrical flinch, curling up. Jack fought back a grin.
He let the grin develop fully as the Jaffa turned back to him, huffing and puffing with rage.
"So… tell me more about Neck-bed? Necky? Whatever…"
"Nekhbet!" The Jaffa spat at him. "You weak humans have no right to utter her name."
"So, what's with the name?" Jack continued on mildly, as if the guard had not spoken. "Long neck?"
"She is commonly represented by the vulture." Daniel said agreeably, making more thumping noises, even managing to clang something off the walls. The Jaffa did not take the bait.
"Vulture? Ah… long neck. Is she bald, too?"
The Jaffa was speechless with rage, sputtering and hissing incoherently.
"Most likely a carrion eater, I would imagine." Daniel continued with his bang-thump-clang distractions.
"Silence!" The Jaffa gripped the bars to Jack's cell, shaking them. Behind him, Daniel reached out and passed the knife to Teal'c. Carter whipped off her belt and started the pry open the control panel by the cell with the buckle, actually having to reach her arm out as far as she could.
Daniel's distractions continued, but the Jaffa ignored him completely, not wanting to be baited again.
Jack continued needling him. "So… have we been formally introduced?" He swept his arms out sideways and made an exaggerated bow. "Jack, the Giant-Killer… well, make that God-Killer. Hathor wasn't all that big, and in all honesty, Ra was a tiny little thing. Kinda spindly, if you know what I mean."
"Gods cannot die." The Jaffa was now speaking through clenched teeth, the big vein in his head throbbing.
"Oooo, yeah. That's probably what they've been telling you. Let's see…" He coughed loudly, clearing his throat as Carter finally popped the control panel open. Fortunately, it was hinged and she managed to open it and not drop the cover onto the ground. She froze for a second before throwing a grin in Jack's direction and continuing on.
Daniel was left, momentarily, with nothing to do. He continued dragging himself around the cell, making thumping and banging noises. Jack's lips twitched as he heard a soft, but clear 'Here Jaffa, Jaffa, Jaffa…' from the other cell. The guard got visibly angrier, but every time he looked like he was contemplating turning, Jack would take a little step sideways and bring his focus back.
He caught Daniel's gaze long enough for Daniel to point in Teal'c's direction and make a sign like a phone next to his ear. Ah, Teal'c had found a communication console within reach of his cell and was attempting to use the knife to bypass it.
"So… I started off the whole god-killing thing with Ra. Ever heard of him?" There was an indignant noise from Daniel's cell, hastily muffled. "Blew his snaky ass to smithereens. Then… next was who… Hathor? I have to admit, when you've killed as many as I have, you start to lose track."
"Gods cannot…" The Jaffa's seething was abruptly cut off as the power went out. Jack barely made out Carter's form retreating, backing away from the now closed control box. She passed Daniel something before they all dropped to the floor again.
"Well, well. What an interesting development." Jack couldn't see the guard, but he could hear his harsh breathing as he spun, peering into the cells. "Someone turned out the lights. You can go and check on that if you want." Jack only hoped that communications and lights were on two different systems… like phones and electricity back home.
He shrugged. "Go on. We'll be fine." He kept his voice as innocent as he could. Daniel hid his snicker under another round of bang-thump-clang.
"I fear not the darkness. I have been given a task and I shall fulfill it."
"Such dedication. How about some ghost stories then? Well, not so much 'ghost' as 'dead Goa'uld' stories. Where were we… Ah yes. Ra. Hathor. Apophis… at least we think so… Who else? Seth. Sokar."
He continued on with his list as Daniel got up. There was very, very dim emergency lighting now. It was barely enough for him to make out the familiar form of the archaeologist as he leaned against the door. Sam had given him a hairpin and he was quietly picking the lock of his cell with the pin and a bent metal piece from the power console.
Jack continued baiting the Jaffa until he saw Daniel and Carter make their move, exiting the cell that Daniel had opened.
"There's just one thing…" Jack said as Daniel reached up to tap the Jaffa on the shoulder.
The Jaffa spun to face Daniel. "I killed Ra." Daniel snarled as he put both hands on the Jaffa's chest and pushed him back into Jack's cell bars. Jack immediately wrapped his arms around the Jaffa's neck and squeezed. Daniel grabbed for the guard's wrists while Sam went for the zat gun tucked up under his chest-plate.
Finally the guard lurched forward, smacking Daniel and dropping him to the ground, pulling free of Jack. Carter shot him with the zat before he could take another step. Daniel sat up as Sam made a face and searched the Jaffa again, this time finding the keys to the cells.
They freed Jack and then Teal'c.
"O'Neill, I managed to rewire the communications panel and have advised the Tok'ra of our location. They will be sending reinforcements shortly."
"Good stuff, Teal'c. Hammond's going to love this report. What say we get the hell out of here?"